Chapter 33 Aniyah
ANIYAH
Why is this damn elevator taking so long?
I’d already texted Nathen twice, and still no response. I didn’t think Ras would hurt him. Nathen was one of my employees, and Ras knew how I felt about the people who worked for me. But then again, with Ras... you just never really knew. That unpredictability was part of his charm.
The elevator finally dinged as it hit the fourth floor. The doors slid open, and I stepped out just as Natalie came walking down the hall. She was too busy looking over her shoulder to watch where she was going.
“Natalie?” My brows lifted. “What’re you doing here?”
She was a main-floor waitress. She had no business being on this floor.
She spun at the sound of my voice, eyes going wide. She jerked to a stop right in front of me and bowed low. “I’m so sorry, Miss Aniyah.”
Slowly, she lifted her head, her eyes avoiding mine. I exhaled, long and annoyed, crossing my arms as I waited for the excuse. Her eyes darted around before settling on mine.
“I—I…” she stuttered, her body shaking like a leaf.
I twirled my finger, signaling for her to spit it out.
“Mr. Manicotti and Mina had a little too much to drink downstairs,” she rushed out. “She asked me to help them up to the room he booked.”
It was believable and very him. Manicotti was a millionaire mage with a fetish for fucking under shooting stars. Claimed when they streaked past at the right moment, it felt like his dick was magic, making the star shine with his orgasm.
I nodded once. “Okay. Get back to your post downstairs.”
Without hesitation, she scurried into the elevator with a scared but grateful smile before she pushed the main floor button. The girl was just trying to help a friend. I had to give her a little slack.
Shrugging, I continued, but when I rounded the corner, any sympathy vanished.
Nathen, in full wolf form, was pinned against the wall by the throat, his teeth snapping furiously at Ras, who dodged the attacks like it was nothing.
“Did you and Van trick me into helping you?” he growled, the sound lethal. “I was minding my business, stalking the jewel of my existence, and then you had to ruin it with your incompetence.”
He leaned in close, mouth near Nathen’s jaw, not a hint of fear in his eyes. “I’ve killed for less. I really hate when people disrupt our time together.”
I placed my hands on my hips. “How can you say you’re spending time with me,” I called out, “when all you do is watch from afar? That’s not exactly fair, Ras.”
He turned at the sound of my voice, and just like that, the monster melted. In two seconds flat, he changed from killer to cuddler.
A wide grin spread across Ras’ face as he dropped Nathen like a sack of wet laundry and strode toward me.
His eyes slowly roamed from my heels to my mouth, soaking in every inch of me. He looked at me like I was art—divine, untouched, worthy of unlimited devotion.
My stomach fluttered. I turned to the side, striking a playful pose. “Well? How do I look? Ravishing, right?”
He stopped a few feet away, inhaled deeply, then exhaled like he was trying to keep himself from combusting. When he opened his eyes, that boyish smile was waiting.
“Turn for me, my star. Put on a show.”
I winked, swaying side to side, giving him teasing glimpses of bare skin where the fabric cut away. His crimson eyes tracked every movement like a predator in tall grass.
Stepping closer, I slowly twirled, letting the dress move like a second skin for the finale. When I faced him again, his chest rose and fell in sharp bursts. His arms were tight at his sides, showing just how hard he was working to restrain himself.
I peeked around him and caught sight of Nathen. Now shifting back to human, he laid on the ground, coughing.
“We need to talk about how to treat people, especially my people. You know, the ones who make me money?”
Ras trembled, every muscle in his body strung as tight as a drawn bow. The way he looked at me... I knew he wanted to trace every inch of skin he'd just seen with his tongue.
Sucking in my bottom lip, I tried my hardest not to laugh, not to let him know I was pushing him on purpose.
A strangled chuckle escaped me. His eyes snapped to my mouth, locking on the slight tremble.
Those ruby irises flashed like fire, and suddenly, I was over his shoulder with just a scoop of his arms.
“Ras!” I shouted, wiggling around, but his grip was unshakable.
He didn’t answer. Just stalked down the hall, his free hand sliding under my dress and slipping between my thighs, fingers diving into the heat he already knew he’d find.
A moan spilled from me, unbidden. The arousal Van had stoked earlier crashed back into me as if it had never left.
Ras barked at Nathen over his shoulder, “Don’t follow,” as he opened a door to a room and slammed it shut behind us.
“You were supposed to teach us how to work the panels,” I whined, pushing myself off his back. Then I caught sight of his taut, perfect ass, and, yeah, every educational thought flew straight out the window.
“You should’ve thought about that before you came up here looking like that.”
The fact that he couldn’t even put it into words made me grin so wide my jaw hurt.
Glancing around the room, I realized he’d picked what looked like one of our "In the Air" rooms. Its four walls were decked out in a sky-high illusion, the scent of crisp altitude laced with flickers of magic. A soft mist brushed across my skin like I’d stepped into a cloud.
I was just about to enjoy it when his fingers slipped inside me, slow yet sudden. My eyes crossed when he spread them, dragging the pads against my walls, hitting that spot that made my body forget everything but him.
My arms buckled as I moaned. “Rasmus… shit…”
I blinked, trying to shake my brain free. Why had I come up here again?
Before I could remember, he hauled me over his shoulder and tossed me onto a soft bed.
“No, no,” I gasped, propping myself on my elbows and planting a hand on his chest to stop him. “You need to teach Nathen. He still doesn't know how to work the rooms.”
Ras leaned into my hand, looking at me like I was dessert after a seven-day fast. “Already did. What you saw was him trying to show me he figured it out, and I, uh… may have overreacted a little.”
I lifted a brow. “A little?”
He nodded solemnly. “That was me showing restraint.”
My hand trembled from how solid his chest felt when he pushed closer.
“I don’t like anyone interrupting the time I get to watch you. How are your grandfathers, by the way?”
I laughed, no longer surprised by what he did and didn’t know. I let my hand drop as he kissed down my neck. “They’re good. Gave me some advice, or maybe a pep talk? Depends how you look at it.”
“Mmm,” he hummed, his lips trailing heat over my skin.
My grandfather’s words echoed through my head. I glanced at my watch. A few more hours, tops. Maybe I should just get this over with and clear the air so we could move forward, one way or another.
“You know,” Ras murmured, teasing, “if I were someone like Lucus, I’d be very offended that you're this distracted while I’m trying to set your whole body on fire.”
I wrapped my arms around him, grounding myself in the comfort of having someone like him, someone who could tease me yet still feel solid underneath it all.
“What’s on your mind, my star?”
The sincerity in his voice made me hesitate, but only for a second. Fear crept up my spine like frost. If I didn’t say it now, I never would, so I blurted, “I want to use my power on all of you before I acknowledge you as my mates.”
There. It was out. No way to take it back. Now, I had to channel my Desmond name and remain strong, unbothered, and confident, even if I didn’t feel it in the slightest.
Ras pulled back to study me, eyebrows tight. “I mean… I’ll do anything you want to prove it. But why do you think that’ll change anything?”
I licked my lips, eyes darting away. My throat felt dry. “I have to know. We… I mean, I… can’t move forward if I don’t.”
His face went blank, then he rolled off me, sitting on the edge of the bed. Shit.
Panic clawed up my chest. Had I already messed this up? My defenses surged, cold and brutal. Fuck it. If he couldn’t handle it, then he wasn’t worth it. Simple.
My stomach twisted anyway.
He pulled out his phone, tapped a few things, then stood and offered me his hand.
“Let’s go.”
I stared at it. “Go where?”
“What do you mean, where?” He threw his hands up, exasperated. “Let’s get this over with.”
My brain scrambled. “W-what?”
He met my eyes with total seriousness. “I just texted the others.”
“Wait—what do you mean?” I said again, but he was already pulling me toward the elevator.
“I told you,” he said, as if this were obvious. “I texted the others that you need them. Don’t worry, none of them are super busy anyways.”
From the hallway, Alic bellowed, “Rasmus, what the fuck does your text mean?!”
Ras grinned. “See? Doing nothing. This is much more important.”
The door slammed open. Alic stormed in, eyes flicking between the two of us. His expression sharpened with concern as he dropped into a bed beside me, checking me over for any injuries.
“Are you okay? Did something happen?” He went to lift my arms and legs, and I glared at Ras like this was his fault.
“I’m fine.”
Alic turned on Ras. “You sent ‘SOS - Aniyah,’ and she looks fine. Don’t tell me this is another one of your ‘Aniyah withdrawal’ texts. We told you you’re not allowed to use the group chat every time you miss her!”
Ras threw up his hands. “Then what’s the point of the group chat?! I thought it was an outlet for like-minded people! I don’t want to talk about anything else but her.”
Alic dragged a hand down his face like this wasn't the first time he’d had this conversion. “It’s for emergencies. Or when something affects all of us!”
“Then I used it right!” Ras shot back, stepping toe-to-toe with him. “Aniyah wants to use her powers on all of us before she accepts the mate bond. Let’s just get it done.”